Halifax Stanfield International Airport Developments

[W.Sobchak]

I am afraid your comment, about fixing someone's comment by replacing Maritimes with Nova Scotia, very well could be coninsidered as snide. That's not over-sensitivity, just an observation of most of your comments.

After living in all 3 centres of NB urbanality, almost every flight I had to take for work or fun always stopped in Halifax. Shoot one time flying to Van. I had to drive to Moncton from Fredericton, just to have a 3 hour lay over in Halifax. Thats not including the time i was flying home from Texas. That however was my rookie mistake for not flying into Bangor. Fact is it is not as convenient to fly from NB most times than it is to fly out of Halifax.

[q12]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

If you are from greater Moncton/eastern NB, there are more flights on larger aircraft on multiple carriers (AC, WestJet, Porter) from Moncton to Toronto than there is from Moncton to YHZ. Toronto therefore tends to be our default hub as a result. We can also use Montreal and New York as hubs. This is not to say that people from Moncton never use YHZ. Of course they do, it's just that depending on the destination, the connections can be much better out of TO.

Moncton is only a 2 hour drive to Halifax Stanfield and is closer than a lot of Nova Scotian communities to Stanfield. We are not saying everyone in the Maritimes flies to Halifax on Beechcrafts and Dash-8s and then connects. Most Maritimers using Stanfield would more likely drive to Stanfield and park or stay at a hotel then fly out to their destination.

The Maritimes are geographically tiny compared to other provinces, therefore just because of a border in Amherst doesn't mean people from N.B. think Stanfield is too far to drive. Hell since the construction of major divided highways in N.B. and N.S. and the Confederation Bridge people find driving to an another airport like Stanfield or Bangor even more convenient.

We don't need to be reminded that Toronto has better connections than Halifax either, it's pretty obvious.

Just look at this regional map of AC routes:

http://enroute.aircanada.com/en/magazine

[CdnEh]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Fixed it for you....

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by q12

Moncton is only a 2 hour drive to Halifax Stanfield and is closer than a lot of Nova Scotian communities to Stanfield. We are not saying everyone in the Maritimes flies to Halifax on Beechcrafts and Dash-8s and then connects. Most Maritimers using Stanfield would more likely drive to Stanfield and park or stay at a hotel then fly out to their destination.

Granted it's only a two hour drive to Halifax Stanfield from Moncton, but unless Stanfield offers a direct flight to my destination, why would I drive down there if the alternative was a 10 minute drive across town and being dropped off at the front door of the GMIA by my wife? I would save a tank of gas and also hefty airport parking fees by flying locally from my own airport.

Even flying direct out of Halifax can be a pain in the behind (if you are not from Halifax). The most recent time I flew out of Stanfield was to go to Boston for a conference. I used Stanfield because there are direct flights to Logan from Halifax, while I would need to have made connections out of Moncton.

Anyway, my trip back home consisted of a 30 minute taxi ride from my hotel to Logan, arriving two hours before boarding time (as is required now in the post 911 era), an additional 90 minute wait because my flight was delayed, the nearly two hour flight to Stanfield, 30 minutes to get my luggage, clear customs and get to my car, and finally a two hour drive back to Moncton. Total time - a little over eight hours. Boston is only an eight hour drive from Moncton!!!!. I will not be doing that again.

Originally Posted by q12

We don't need to be reminded that Toronto has better connections than Halifax either, it's pretty obvious.

It was not my intent to upset you. I was merely stating that the GMIA has more flights to Toronto than to Halifax Stanfield, and that Toronto is an excellent hub to make connections elsewhere in North America. It therefore makes sense to use Toronto as a transfer point out of Moncton. I was not saying anything bad about Stanfield. Your airport is actually very well connected for a city it's size.

BTW - When I substituted "Nova Scotia" for "Maritime" in your initial post, I was joking. I actually recall you doing something like this to one of my posts in the Atlantic Canada Airport thread some time ago. I was just getting you back.

In any event, I am done with this topic on this thread. I did not intend to start a flame war. I also cast no aspersions about the quality of Halifax Stanfield International Airport. It is a truly fine facility. 'nuff said.

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

Anyway, my trip back home consisted of a 30 minute taxi ride from my hotel to Logan, arriving two hours before boarding time (as is required now in the post 911 era), an additional 90 minute wait because my flight was delayed, the nearly two hour flight to Stanfield, 30 minutes to get my luggage, clear customs and get to my car, and finally a two hour drive back to Moncton. Total time - a little over eight hours. Boston is only an eight hour drive from Moncton!!!!. I will not be doing that again.

Who checks bags anymore? I haven't checked a bag for years....

I can see why you'd prefer to drive from Moncton. However, given the choice to have the eight hours to catch up on work (hooray for airport wifi and power sources in the seats) or spend it driving, I'd rather arrive relaxed and having done some advanced prep work (I'm talking business travel - vacation travel prep work is mostly listening to music and having some drinks) than tired from driving for so long. Also - driving into Boston can present just as many unexpected delays as flying - traffic can be horrifying.

All comes down to personal preference, and how you view your own time as best spent.

[lawsond]

Hmmm. I think we are arguing two separate things here.
In Ontario (where I mostly live), Ottawa and Hamilton each have nice and busy airports and I am sure people from Ott and Ham find it more convenient to fly out of Montreal or Buffalo etc on many occasions.
But that is neither here nor there to the fact that Pearson is the undisputed Regional (as well as national) central airport. It is the mega-hub.
Halifax has that same distinction, not only in the Maritimes but on the east coast as a whole including Newfoundland, Labrador and St. Pierre etc.
There is no comparison in size, traffic or availability of flights.
It is great that someone from Moncton can fly to Toronto. Yippee for you.
But Halifax is tops - right, left and sideways. To suggest it is not the hub of the entire east coast is silly just because someone from Moncton can fly to Toronto direct.

[haligonia]

Originally Posted by lawsond

To suggest it is not the hub of the entire east coast is silly just because someone from Moncton can fly to Toronto direct.

Yes to this.

[halifaxboyns]

Originally Posted by lawsond

To suggest it is not the hub of the entire east coast is silly just because someone from Moncton can fly to Toronto direct.

I think we have to be clear that it's a hub, but only in so far as Air Canada is concerned (and it's partners). For Westjet (which I should say, after the hell they and American put me through on my recent flight back from Chicago for the American Planning Association Conference doesn't deserve to be an airline - but anyway) they aren't using YHZ as a hub, yet. Once their regional airline launches, then maybe, but will depend on the routing system.

Wow, I'm in overload from my trip to Chicago - talk about a confusing airport! American's terminal is horrible - have they heard of moving sidewalks? I was stuck there for 2 days because of thunderstorms and having to go from gate to gate, I felt like I walked about 40 miles! I was supposed to leave at 4pm on Wednesday and I ended up flying out to LA at 10am on Thursday, only to have westjet not accept me at the counter, because the flight was late! I was stuck in LA for 7 hours, no vouchers for food or anything. Thank god I found an airline lounge that was open to the public; but I still ended up getting stuck in Vancouver on the way back. At least American paid for that and gave me food vouchers (finally).

[Waye Mason]

Fun fact:

The Moncton airport a couple years ago proudly expanded to handle 700,000 passengers a year, which is what Halifax was built to handle... in the 1960s. Moncton right now handles around 550,000 per year. Halifax handles 3.5 million.

[fenwick16]

I wonder if this could lead to more flights from Halifax to Europe.

(source: http://www.icelandair.ca/information/med..._skies_between_north_america_and_europe/ )

ICELANDAIR AND WESTJET JOIN FORCES TO OPEN THE SKIES BETWEEN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE
April 17, 2013 13:20
ICELANDAIR AND WESTJET JOIN FORCES TO OPEN THE SKIES BETWEEN NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE

WestJet and Icelandair have launched a new interline agreement opening up the skies for passengers connecting between the Americas and more than 20 Icelandair destinations throughout Europe.

Passengers can now book a single combined e-ticket for WestJet and Icelandair flights which includes the conveniences of single check-in for all flights and baggage sent through to the final destination.

When connecting in the Americas, Icelandair customers will enjoy WestJet’s fleet of Boeing 737 Next-Generation aircraft serving more than 80 cities in North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

"Icelandair and WestJet share many of the same philosophies including offering our passengers a refreshing travel experience” said Helgi Mar Bjorgvinsson, Icelandair's Senior Vice President of Marketing and Sales. "Our complementary customer service and connections through Toronto and Halifax make this a natural partnership. We also look forward to further opening the skies of Canada for both inbound and outbound passengers."

Earlier this year Icelandair expanded its seasonal service from Toronto to a year-round operation with plans to increase capacity next summer. Icelandair will also resume seasonal service from Halifax with two flights a week starting June 1, 2013.

“We’re excited to welcome Icelandair as WestJet’s thirty-second partner airline,” said Todd Peterson, WestJet’s Director, Alliances. “Icelandair and WestJet share a reputation for quality service and great value. The new relationship between our airlines will enhance options for travel between North America and Europe.”

Icelandair, the national carrier of Iceland since 1937, offers service to Iceland from Boston, New York-JFK, Seattle, Denver and Toronto with seasonal service from Newark, Washington, D.C., Minneapolis-St. Paul, Orlando Sanford, Halifax, and Anchorage (starting May 15, 2013). Connections through Icelandair’s hub at Keflavik International Airport are available to more than 20 destinations in Scandinavia, the U.K. and Continental Europe. Only Icelandair allows passengers to stopover in Iceland at no additional airfare.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by Waye Mason

The Moncton airport a couple years ago proudly expanded to handle 700,000 passengers a year, which is what Halifax was built to handle... in the 1960s. Moncton right now handles around 550,000 per year. Halifax handles 3.5 million.

It's telling that in the Maritimes you are not supposed to admit that Halifax has any sort of special regional status (aside from maybe the illegitimacy of its economy), but in Ontario or here in BC people who don't have a skin in the game regard it as the economic and cultural capital.

This airport thing illustrates how silly the denial can get. Believe it or not, the ratio of passenger totals for Halifax-Moncton (1:6.7) is almost the same as the ratio for Toronto-Halifax (1:8.7)! The disdain for Halifax in the rest of the region actually has a very similar flavour to anti-Toronto bitterness in Canada. The scale may be different but the relationships are the same.

[Hali87]

Originally Posted by halifaxboyns

I think we have to be clear that it's a hub, but only in so far as Air Canada is concerned (and it's partners).

I believe Porter also uses Halifax as a hub. Pretty much all of their flights originating in St. John's go through Halifax. YHZ also has direct Porter flights to Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City (possibly other cities but I'm not sure) while most cities served by Porter only have direct flights to Toronto (with the exception of St. John's, which only has direct flights to Halifax).

[halifaxboyns]

Originally Posted by Hali87

I believe Porter also uses Halifax as a hub. Pretty much all of their flights originating in St. John's go through Halifax. YHZ also has direct Porter flights to Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City (possibly other cities but I'm not sure) while most cities served by Porter only have direct flights to Toronto (with the exception of St. John's, which only has direct flights to Halifax).

We don't have Porter out here in the west, so it's quite easy for me to forget; but you may be correct.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by Waye Mason

Fun fact:

The Moncton airport a couple years ago proudly expanded to handle 700,000 passengers a year, which is what Halifax was built to handle... in the 1960s. Moncton right now handles around 550,000 per year. Halifax handles 3.5 million.

Actually the GMIA handled 615,000 passengers last year Waye.

Since the current terminal was designed for 700,000 passengers per year (as you said), they are in the very preliminary stages of looking at a modest terminal expansion, probably in the next 10 years.

I'm not hijacking the thread BTW, just correcting a fact. You guys should all come over and visit the Atlantic Canada Airport Thread.

[Haligonian88]

The check-in area is finally getting upgraded!

$44.5 million airport upgrade to improve check-in experience
May 23, 2013 - 6:08pm BILL POWER BUSINESS REPORTER


The new check-in area of Halifax Stanfield International Airport will feature double-storey windows along the hall like those at the north end of the terminal.

Spacious and bright.

Uncluttered.

It’s unlikely these are the first words that come to the minds of travellers experiencing early-morning congestion while checking in at Halifax Stanfield International Airport.

But these were some of the adjectives airport officials used Thursday to describe how the out-of-date check-in hall at the south end of the terminal will look and function next spring after a $44.5-million facelift.

“The passenger check-in experience and baggage-handling capacity will be dramatically improved,” Dean Bouchard, the airport’s director of infrastructure, said at a news conference.

Bouchard said the existing check-in hall, notorious for congestion in the morning and during peak travel periods like March break and Christmas, will retain its existing footprint at the terminal.

“But it will become wider, taller and much more efficient,” he said.

http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/11...t-upgrade-to-improve-check-in-experience

[ILoveHalifax]

Love all the snowmen.

[q12]

Originally Posted by Haligonian88

The check-in area is finally getting upgraded!

Here are some more photos from Stanfields facebook site:



https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/941667_10151566858291245_996867253_n.jpg


https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/983977_10151566858296245_455889969_n.jpg

It's going to look awesome when its finished next spring!

[halifaxboyns]

It's nice to finally see the airport re-investing and turning into something that time didn't forget. Living in Calgary, I fly in and out a few times a year from YHZ and I can tell you at Christmas that check in area can be a gong show (specially for Air Canada). Plus if the airport is going to market to new airlines (international mainly); it's nice to show a modern updated airport to them, versus ours which for a time seemed neglected.

My only beef with the airport remains the actual departures level. It's still the long corridor with a narrow 'foot path' - it would be nice if the upper level could be extended outward so that a couple moving walkways could be put in for seniors who aren't as mobile as others. But the other improvements on that level (adding more windows to increase the lighting) and the arrivals staircase area from the upper level are great.

I'd also add that over time, I'd like YHZ to take a page from YVR when it comes to airport art and truly having the 'wow factor' when you arrive. For those who haven't flown through YVR (particularly the International Arrivals) it is stunning. The whole experience showcases a lot of native artwork (the totem poles are amazing). Here is one and here is another. Even in the domestic area (which is the oldest part of the airport) has this awesome totem pole, which I love seeing. I'd like to see some partnership with the local native communities here in YHZ to do the same - but over time. Lets focus on the much needed changes and then add these things in over time...

[pblaauw]

Does YHZ still have those silly models of the harbour bridges on the luggage carousels? Anything would be better than that.

Except sheet metal lighthouses.

[scooby074]

Originally Posted by pblaauw

Does YHZ still have those silly models of the harbour bridges on the luggage carousels? Anything would be better than that.

Except sheet metal lighthouses.

Yep still got them. *shudder*